1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is concerned with containers for some liquid pharmaceutical products and more particularly for a safe cap closure for such containers. It is presently common practice for the containers or bottles of liquid, pharmaceuticals that are intended to be administered intravenously or otherwise to a patient through a needle into the patient have a rubber stopper to which a needle attached to a syringe is inserted and the medicine withdrawn with the syringe. This often exposes the medical worker to accidental pricks by the syringe needle with the risk of contamination of the needle as well as exposure of the worker to blood transmitted diseases such as AIDS. The present invention provides a medicine container closure that maintains the medicine uncontaminated, but provides a means in which a syringe can be utilized to withdraw the medicine from the container without utilization of a separate needle on the syringe. This is accomplished by providing a Luer lock connection at the end of a hard plastic Luer lock adaptor which at a first inner end may snap on and off the specially designed container cap that is attached to a standard medicine container and at a second outer end may be connected to the Luer connector of a standard syringe. Within the central section of the generally cylindrical adapter is a plastic ferrule with a hollow lance at its inner end in flow communication with its outer end which bears against the opening of the syringe where connected.
The ferrule is normally at the outer end of the adapter, but when a syringe is connected it advances within the adapter automatically piercing the rubber seal of the container and allows medicine to be withdrawn into the syringe.
2. Prior Art
In U.S. Pat. No. 29,656, Chittenden, et al, transfer containers provided having a stopper closure with a removable cover and the slidable lance or piercing unit that may be pushed against the rubber seal of one container, puncturing the rubber seal of that container. Simultaneously, it slides to the second position within the tone structure and against the stopper of its own container piercing the rubber seal of that first container, providing flow communication between the two containers.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,128,098, Bloom, et al, discloses a vial transfer device utilizing a valve spike structure component of tubular construction and a syringe coupler supported on the spike. The coupler carries a special collapsible valve member that opens upon insertion of a blunt syringe tip into the coupler and closes upon removal of the syringe tip. Transfer device is secured to the vial by protective skirt with snap lugs to engage and secure the device to the vial. Other references of background interest in this field are as follows:
______________________________________ U.S. PAT. INVENTOR OWNED BY ______________________________________ U.S. PAT. 2,667,986 Perelson -- U.S. PAT. 3,872,992 Larson Pharmaco, Inc. U.S. PAT. 3,999,543 Lacey Illinois Tool Works Inc. U.S. PAT. 4,169,475 Genese Abbott Laboratories U.S. PAT. 4,210,623 Breno et al Ownes-Illinois, Inc. U.S. PAT. 4,768,568 Fournier et al Survival Technology, Inc. U.S. PAT. 4,610,374 Buehler Dougherty Brothers Company ______________________________________